Theatre faculty

Karen Bohm Barker, M.F.A.

Profile

Professor Barker’s professional acting credits include national radio (Moody Broadcasting Network), major conferences (Genesis and RCA One Thing), and Taproot (Washington), Saltworks (Pennsylvania) and Eastcheap (Iowa) theatre companies. Her theatre work also includes serving as dramaturg for the new script "Unjustifiable Acts" on the Goodman Theatre's studio stage and as stage manager at the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in California. In 2003, she and Jeff Barker, her husband, both were recognized by the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for exceptional service to theatre in our seven-state region. The Barkers perform regularly at theatre conferences. They also lead seminars on incorporating drama into worship.

Courses

Theatre Production Ensemble

Theatre Production Ensemble

(1/2 credit) This course is designed to provide students with practical experience in the many facets of theatre production. Course members audition and interview for performance and production staff positions.

Public Speaking

Public Speaking

(2 credits) This course emphasizes the improvement of public speech habits and the development of proficiency in the organization and presentation of ideas.

Acting: Scene Work

Acting: Scene Work

(4 credits, alternate years, consult department) Students perform scenes from classical, modern and contemporary literature. Emphasis is placed on script analysis. Prerequisite: THE215.

Topics in Dramatic Literature

Topics in Dramatic Literature

(2 credits) Specific subject matter of this course will vary from semester to semester, but will focus on the study of dramatic literature from one genre or one playwright or one geographical area or one theme/value. Prerequisite: THE113.

Selected Topics in Theatre and Speech

Selected Topics in Theatre and Speech

(2-4 credits, alternate years, consult department) This course will focus on various issues of theatre and speech that are not covered in current course offerings. Possible topics might include: auditioning, stage management, musical theatre, contemporary theatre since 1967, specific genres (comedy, tragedy, theatre of the absurd, Greek, etc.), theatre as social criticism, ethnic theatre, theatre as historical documentary.

Acting

Acting

(4 credits) A study of the theoretical framework of the craft of acting.